NCGA COMMENTS TO HOUSE COMMITTEE ON IMPORTANCE OF RFS TO U.S. ENERGY POLICY

JUNE 2013

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(Posted Fri. Jun 21st, 2013)

June 21: The National Corn Growers Association today submitted comments to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on the important role the Renewable Fuel Standard plays in our nation’s broader energy policy. In these comments, submitted in response to the committee’s recent white paper on energy policy, NCGA addressed the important role that the RFS continues to play in meeting federal goals of increasing national security by improving energy and economic security.

NCGA notes in the comments that the government continues to invest in alternative energy sources with the goal of increasing national security by increasing energy security and thus decreasing our reliance upon foreign energy sources. Given this objective, NCGA then looks at initiatives which are effectively improving domestic energy supplies today.

“One of these initiatives is the RFS, which has contributed to U.S. energy security by providing an affordable domestically produced alternative to oil while decreasing greenhouse gas emissions,” the comments, in the form of a letter from NCGA President Pam Johnson, state. “Another mechanism has been through the Corporate Average Fuel Economy Standards, which decrease vehicle fuel consumption through increased mileage requirements. The continued support of methods to decrease the use of and provide alternatives to the consumption of energy while preserving the environment is critical to sustaining the planet for future generations – something farmers have been doing for generations.”

Following a detailed explanation of how the RFS contributes to energy security in a concrete manner, NCGA then answers a list of specific questions the Committee posed. In answering these questions, NCGA offers analysis on a variety of topics including: changing oil consumption patterns; oil price fluctuations; the direct impact of ethanol production on demand for foreign oil; the role of the RFS as U.S. oil production increases; the impact of the RFS on fuel price volatility; and possible options for further increasing energy security through biofuels.

In this analysis, NCGA offers both an insightful examination of how shifting demand and demographics will impact the current fuel paradigm and a firmly substantiated explication of the myriad benefits of domestically produced, environmentally responsible ethanol made from corn, a renewable resource.